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‘Smart’ contact lens could detect signs of cancer

Professional Engineering

Stock image. The new contact lens could detect signs of cancer in tears (Credit: Shutterstock)
Stock image. The new contact lens could detect signs of cancer in tears (Credit: Shutterstock)

A new ‘smart’ contact lens can capture and detect particles that could indicate the presence of cancer in the wearer’s body.

Developed at the Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovation (TIBI) in California, the lens can capture exosomes, nanometre-scale particles that are formed within cells and secreted into fluids.

The lens was designed with microchambers that can capture exosomes found in tears.

“This offers a potential platform for cancer pre-screening and a supportive diagnostic tool that is easy, rapid, sensitive, cost-effective, and non-invasive,” the researchers said.

Using exosomes for cancer diagnosis has been hampered by the difficulty in isolating exosomes in sufficient quantity and purity. The TIBI team said they “eliminated” the need for isolation methods with the new lens, which was manufactured using a direct laser cutting and engraving approach, rather than conventional cast moulding.

The researchers also used a method that chemically modified the microchamber surfaces to activate them for antibody binding. This method was used instead of standard approaches, in which metallic or nanocarbon materials must be used in expensive clean-room settings. They then optimised procedures for binding captured antibodies to the microchambers.

Spectroscopy was used to detect exosomes secreted from different samples during validation experiments.

“Exosomes are a rich source of markers and biomolecules which can be targeted for several biomedical applications,” said TIBI director Ali Khademhosseini. “The methodology that our team has developed greatly facilitates our ability to tap into this source.”

The research was published in Advanced Functional Materials.


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Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

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